TDL&TH Chapter VI: Audience with the King & Becoming a Knight

Standing before this gate of a door, one could say it gives off a feeling of might.

The gate opens rather smoothly despite its intimidating appearance, but I guess it makes it easier for guests to enter. Entering through the gate, it shuts behind me.

And so, I stand before the king. I properly kneel as a sign of respect. When I entered the throne room, the king had a rather slim build, but definitely gave off the feeling that he is mightier than what can be seen. However, the king being rather youthful was what intrigued me the most.

“Artem Lockwood, I presume?” he says with a powerful voice, one that had made me slightly shiver.

“Yes, your highness.”

“Please, do raise your head. There is no need for formalities here.”

“As you wish,” I say and stand up to face the king.

“I have heard that you alone defeated a unit of the Blood Eagle. Certainly, it is quite a feat for someone who is going to be a first year at Akashic Records Academy.”

“You give too much praise on someone like me, your highness.”

Well, I am just glad that the enemies are not elites or HVTs (High Value Targets)… honestly, that would only make things a bit more complicated…

“Apologies for interrupting, my liege, but there is some urgent information that has arrived,” the prime minister(?) says, “the mercenaries are part of the Blood Eagle’s upper echelon, their leader being the second-in-command.”

… Seriously? Well… I did jinx myself by thinking they were not special, so that much was to be expected.

“Well, Artem Lockwood, not even a day since you arrived in Elesia and you have already achieved quite the prestige.”

Tch. I should’ve known those mercenaries were not your generic mobs. To say the least, defeating a royal knight must be rather difficult if they had been grunts.

“I only happened upon the situation by mere chance, your highness.”

“If you were one of my kingdom’s top brass, I would have given you my daughter’s hand in marriage,” he responds with a grin, “though from what my daughter told me, you should have been more like a dashing hero, carrying her in your arms like a newlywed bride.”

“Y-your highness… I would not do such a thing,” I say out of pure surprise at the king’s words.

Hey, this isn’t some sort of harem fantasy story… besides, what is up with the king?

“Well, I should give you some kind of reward. I cannot let someone who does such a noble act leave empty,” the king paused for a moment before continuing his words, “would you like to become this kingdom’s knight?”

Maybe if it was in a different setting.

“I must refuse your offer, your highness.”

“Oh? And why is that?”

“I… have no doubt that one day my association with this kingdom may do more harm than good.”

I am a demon lord. Regardless, I am not a hero at all – who has ever heard of a paragon of evil fighting evil?

“Then you can be my knight,” the princess says.

Oi. What are you trying to do?

“… May I ask why, your highness?” I ask in response.

“If you become my knight, I can take responsibility as a third party,” she replies with a grin, “plus, I believe working as my knight will give you several benefits.”

… She is planning something, right? Ah, I’ll just play along. There is no real hurry and hey, I could use a job on the side. Sure I have a lot of cash, but that won’t last forever. Furthermore, if I am a knight of the princess, it should not harm the Elesian Kingdom directly if the princess is married off to a prince of a different kingdom.

“So be it, my princess.”

She walks down the curved stairs from her father’s side while the prime minister stands at an appropriate spot near the king. As she stands before me, I kneel.

She summons forth four, floating semi-transparent weapons – a magic staff, a bow, a greatsword, and a rapier. As the weapons slowly orbit her, she summons forth a longsword that seems to be made of light.

“I bestow upon thee a part of my regalia, the Masamune,” she says and continues the motions of dubbing me as a knight, while had I noticed that the king and prime minister were astonished. Once she finished, she says, “arise sir Artem Lockwood, knight of Harmonia Sylvein.”

Before I stand up, her sword turns into tendrils of light that fly into my body.